York County senator weighs in on Haley’s vetoes

In the wake of Governor Haley’s last-minute budget vetoes, one local lawmaker says he thinks the General Assembly will override draconian cuts to two state agencies — the State Arts commission and the Charleston-based Sea Grant Consortium.

State Senator Wes Hayes says this is not the first time lawmakers have had to deal with the governor cutting arts funding.

The Arts and Sea Grant Commissions were forced to shut their doors Friday because the governor’s vetoes came after the start of the fiscal year — a move that Hayes says is an issue in itself.

Hayes says if the legislature had finished the budget sooner, the governor’s vetoes would not have come after the start of the fiscal year.

Democratic lawmakers across the state spoke out against the vetoes Monday, including state senator Vincenet Sheheen, who ran against Haley in 2008. Hayes says while Haley’s vetoes total nearly 68-million dollars, the State Arts Commission and Sea Grant Commission are affected the most.

This is the second year in a row Haley has vetoed the Arts Commission. Hayes says the item will likely be overridden.